The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-04-19

in orders complained OF in trade circles. Ma
chinery is generally very busy. and. in all prob
ability, capacity will be kept fully crowded all
season.
The car-makers throughout the country have
lately added to their working force, and all the
works, big and little, are now manned to their
fullest extent.
The anthracite coal miners anticipate an adj
vance in wages on May l. The miners in Ten
nessee and Kentucky are locked out until they
shall sign an iron-clad agreement
In the Northwest vast amount of building
work is projected. and has been already begun.
Real estate is correspondingly active. but the
increase is not such as to jeopardize the enter
prise at work.
The Pittsburg brick-makers want advance
of from 123 to % cents day. In the machine
yards the men want the output reduced lO per
cent. one more man in each yard, and per
cent. advance in wages.
The machinists in Chicago, st. Louis, Kansas
CITY, as we'll as in some of the smaller manu-
featuring towns of the West. find the rate of
wages improving without the pressure of strikes
There is demand for higher class of skilled
labor in mechanical employments.
The owners OF cotton mills are encouraged to
increase the capacity of mills by steadily. ad-
vancing prices of stocks. Northern manufact-
urers report average increase in the value of
stock about 20 per cent, while Southern mills
average AOout 10 per cent aOVdEce
Idle labor is becoming more and more rare.
The tendency is to an advance 10 wages. regard
less Of strikes. The builders throughout the
West have arrangements made for a very active
season, and building material supplies of all
kinds have been literally purchased
At last sensible effort has been made to solve
the convict-iabor question and that is to en-
p!oy sonvicts in keeping the public highways in
order the State and macadamiZing them.
The country roads could be put in good shape by
convict labor and tie convicts would have better
health.
49, Labor opposes Chinese immigration. but
welcomes the ffty-odd thousand south-of-
Europe laborers. who come with the flowers OF
spring and build railroads, and return in the
fall, to live like lords their savings. The rush
this year is unprecedented, not only from south
Europe, but from Germany and Great
Britain.
Paper manufacturers are still discussing the
advisabity of shutting down at 8 o'clock on Sat
urday until on Monday morning. Some of the
larger paper manufacturers refuse to do So Pa
per is firmer in price than it has been for some
time, but the inducements to strengthen quota
tions by decreased production are not sufficiently
strong to bring about an organization.
The New York plumbers paid out $4,000 in
their long strike. which was recently declared
off. The ron-molders' strike at Chicago will
likely be of long duration. Four stove foundries
are now closed in ST. Louis, but steps are being
taken to reopen them this week. The stove
molders of Milwaukee idle, and protest
against supplying non-union establishment
with stoves.
The output of the locomotive works of the
country now averages from thirty six to forty
engines per week. The output of the textile
mills of the country. especially in New England,
will be largely increased during the summer
The demand for machines for mining coal is
very great and sample machines being
furnished to mine owners in Pennsylvania, Ohio
and Indiana.
The Supreme Court of Connecticut finally
rendered its decision in the printers boycotting
case. which attracted good deal of notice some
time ago. The court says: "The bare assertion
OF such right is startling. The two alleged
/ rights-the right to employ and the right to
boycott-cannot possibly co-exst. One or the
other must yield. If the defendants had the
right which they claim, then all business enter
prises are alike subject to their direction"
Country towns near large cities are likely to
be helped by the outflow of industrial establish
ments On account Of high rents and taxes. Man
ufacturers who started in few years ago in
small towns are doing remarkably we'll. and in
many ways underselling city competitors. En-
| ployers speak frequently of other advantages
| besides, and a movement will probably set in
| to the well-situated towns within fifty miles of
| commercial centers.
An unusually large number of English me-
| chauics have arranged to emgrate this year,
| and expect to find employment 10 the machine
shops and factories of New England and the
Middle States There is no particular induce
ment for them to come, outside OF the general
probability for finding employment American
machinlnst have for years been complaining
| that with all the trades-unions of English me-
| chancs, when they come here they are anxious
| to work for what they get.
The extension Of the railway system this sea-
| son will create permanent employment for a
| large number of skilled mechanics in supplying
| railway materials and appliances. New manu-
featuring centers will spring up in the West for
! this purpose. Railway managers have inquiries
| now out for machinery and motive power to be
erected in Missouri. Colorado and in the further
northwestern States. Their object is to be more
independent of sources of supply east of the Mis-
| sissippi A good many skilled mechanics from
| Eastern shops have been invited to positions in
| the West. The Western car shops are also being
enlarged and within the past two or three weeks
| heavy contracts have been placed for hard wood
| supplies.
! The Knights of Labor are losing membership
| about fast as they gained, and the effort is
| now being made to divert the attention of the
| organization to more important subjects than
that of strikes. The question of political action
has been decided The question of cooperation
remains a debatabe one. The proposition fire.
| quently made to raise money to start manu-
featuring concerns is not favored by the Knights
| best advisers who recognize that their efforts
would simply come in competition with the bet
| ter organized efforts of more experienced COM
petitors. The proposition has been made in some
/ assemblies of the Knights to appoint travelling
committee to go southwark to discover what
| opportunities exist for employment and for the
starting up Of little industries. When they shall
60, if they do CO. they will find many if not most
of the desirable locations already secured; but
/ these can be purchased at reasonable prices COM
| pared with what will be charged five years
| hence.
PERSONAL AND SOCIETY.
|